Somewhere in the Bitterness
by jetsfanforlyfe
Summary: Taylor confronts Chad, and their relationship crumbles at their feet. Oneshot, songfic. Traylor, Chaylor, Chadriella, Troyella


Disclaimer: Not mine, don't sue. Belongs to Disney. The song belongs to the Fray.

A/N: So, since it's Christmas, I'm in a very updaty/posty mood! LOL, so I decided that I'd write a few of the one-shots that have been floating around my head for awhile. This one is based off of the song "How to Save a Life" by the Fray. It's also my first Chaylor fic, so I hope it's okay.

Enjoy!

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_"Step one you say we need to talk  
__He walks you say sit down it's just a talk  
__He smiles politely back at you  
__You stare politely right on through_

Taylor McKessie shifted her weight nervously from her left foot to her right, her finger hovering over the doorbell. She was standing on Chad Danforth's doorstep, a million thoughts running through her head as she tried to understand what she thought she had seen the night before.

Making up her mind, she pressed the button down, listening to the chimes inside the house as they announced her arrival. Moments later, the sound of footsteps greeted her ears and the door was thrown open, revealing Chad standing in the doorway, a casual smile on his lips as he looked at her.

"Hey, babe," he whispered, leaning forward to kiss her. Taylor pushed him away, turning her head. Chad straightened up, confused.

"Taylor?"

"Chad, we need to talk," Taylor said solemnly, walking past him into the house. He followed her into his kitchen, trying to figure out what was happening.

_Some sort of window to your right  
__As he goes left and you stay right  
__Between the lines of fear and blame  
__And you begin to wonder why you came_

"How long, Chad?" Taylor asked bluntly when the reached the kitchen, turning on her heel to face her boyfriend. "How long?"

"I'm not sure I understand, Taylor. How long what?"

"Chad, don't play dumb. I know. I saw you with her yesterday."

"Taylor, I don't know what you're talking about. You saw me with who?"

Taylor laughed humorlessly, shaking her head.

"You were with Gabriella, Chad, you were on a date. I saw you with her last night, and now I want to know-how long?"

Chad gaped at her, his face betraying his shock.

"Taylor, I-"

"How long, Chad?"

"Six months," he replied, defeat etched in his face. It was clear that he had never predicted the implications of his actions.

_Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend  
__Somewhere along in the bitterness  
__And I would have stayed up with you all night  
__Had I known how to save a life_

Taylor shook her head, walking angrily to the front door. Chad followed her, trying to get her to stay.

"Taylor, I'm sorry. I never meant anything by it, it just happened one day," he pleaded, reaching for her arm as she stalked to the door. Groaning in frustration, Taylor whipped around, jerking her arm from Chad's grasp.

"You didn't mean anything by it? Chad, you cheated on me. With my best friend. Didn't you think I'd be upset?"

"It happened in the heat of the moment, we never meant for it to go on so long."

"Chad, six months is not the heat of the moment," Taylor shot back, tears welling in her eyes as she looked away from Chad. "I can't believe I was so blind," she whispered, shaking her head.

"Taylor, please, let me make it up to you," Chad pleaded, reaching out for her arm again.

"I'm done, Chad," Taylor replied, turning on her heel and extracting her arm from his grasp. "I'm done."

She threw open the front door, stalking angrily toward her car as she left Chad standing in the doorway, a look of sadness and shock mingling on his face.

_Let him know that you know best  
__Cause after all you do know best  
__Try to slip past his defense  
__Without granting innocence_

As Taylor drove aimlessly away from Chad's house, she struggled to blink away the angry, hot tears that were clouding her vision. Taking one hand from the wheel, she swiped angrily at her streaming eyes, the action futile as more tears spilled down her cheeks. Shaking her head to clear her mind, Taylor tried to focus on the road in front of her. Her concentration was broken by the incessant ringing of her cell phone, the tinny ringtone piercing through her consciousness.

Reaching for the phone, Taylor flipped it open. A text message from Gabriella appeared on the screen, inviting her to the movies that night on a double date, her and Chad with Gabriella and Troy. Laughing bitterly, Taylor threw the phone to the side, ignoring the message. She wondered to herself if Troy had figured it out, if he had discovered the truth as well.

This thought brought her to a stop, and she decided on a destination. Swinging the car around, she headed toward Troy Bolton's house.

_Lay down a list of what is wrong  
__The things you've told him all along  
__And pray to God he hears you  
__And pray to God he hears you_

"Taylor?" Troy asked, opening his front door and looking at his friend, surprised. "What's wrong? Are you crying?"

"Troy," Taylor whispered, pulling him into a hug and burying her face into his shirt. Troy stood frozen, a look of shock on his face before he awkwardly patted Taylor on the back, trying to comfort her.

"Taylor, what is it? What's going on?"

"Chad and Gabriella," Taylor whispered, looking up into Troy's eyes. She tried to wipe the tears from her eyes, but he stopped her.

"Chad and Gabriella? What-" he trailed off, realization dawning on his face. "Oh, God," he whispered, stepping back from Taylor and putting a hand to his mouth.

_Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend  
__Somewhere along in the bitterness  
__And I would have stayed up with you all night  
__Had I known how to save a life_

Chad got into his car, flipping open his cell phone and quickly dialing a number as he pulled out of his driveway. After two rings, Gabriella Montez picked up, her voice light and flirty as she answered.

"Hey, Chad," she said, a hint of laughter audible in her tone.

"Gabriella, Taylor knows. I don't know how, but she found out. I think she went to tell Troy."

"What?"

"I don't know, Gabi, she showed up at my house, and I had to tell her everything."

"Chad, what were you thinking?" Gabriella asked, her voice now panicked and high-pitched. "Oh, God, this is horrible, what are we going to do?"

"I don't know. I'm on my way to your place, wait for me."

_As he begins to raise his voice  
__You lower yours and grant him one last choice  
__Drive until you lose the road  
__Or break with the ones you've followed_

Gabriella hung up with Chad, putting her head in her hands as she sat heavily on her bed, the shock of what had just happened setting in. She couldn't believe that they had been so careless, so stupid. One night, a few drinks each, and now their relationships were over.

Tears streamed from her eyes as she looked at a picture of her and Troy on her desk, a picture from a few months before, when they were happy and smiling. She knew now that that would never be again. She had every chance she had with Troy, and she knew it was her own fault.

Selfishness and desire had sent her relationship into the dust. What killed her most, though, was that she knew she loved Troy. She knew that she loved him, but Chad had been something new, something different. Every moment she had spent with him instead of Troy she now regretted, and wished she could take back. It was too late, though, and there was nothing she could do to save her relationship.

_He will do one of two things  
__He will admit to everything  
__Or he'll say he's just not the same  
__And you'll begin to wonder why you came_

Six months later, Chad was sitting alone in a coffee shop, his head in his hands as he nursed a cup of coffee. The months following the revelation and sequential break-up had not been kind to him, and it showed in his face, in the utter sadness and exhaustion visible there. Sighing to himself, he looked up from the table, sipping his coffee absently as he stared into the street.

At that moment, Taylor and Troy walked past the window, arms locked and smiles on their faces. They had grown close after the ordeal, and Chad had heard that they were planning to get engaged soon.

He wouldn't know, though, because he had lost the friendship of both. Neither would talk to him anymore, and it left him alone. He didn't even have Gabriella, who had moved away to California within three months and left him without even a note.

A moment of passion, of carelessness, of opportunity, had been what had ruined him. His selfishness had led to what he had become: an empty shell, void of love and emotion.

He had lost more than a friend and girlfriend that day. He had lost passion for life, willingness to live. He deserved it though, and that was why he kept on living, day after day, fighting through the pain and sorrow. He deserved that pain, and it let him know he was still alive, even if he felt lost.

It let him know where he had gone wrong.

_Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend  
__Somewhere along in the bitterness  
__And I would have stayed up with you all night  
__Had I known how to save a life

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A/N: So, that was weird. It was kind of Chaylor, kind of Chad/Gabriella, kind of Troyella, kind of Troy/Taylor all at the same time. I don't know if it was any good, but I really wanted to write it.

Reviews greatly appreciated, as always!

jetsfanforlyfe


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